Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Floor panel
26th January 2006
The invention relates to a floor panel comprising a carrier panel
portion on which there is disposed a duty layer with a decorative
representation subdivided into different representation regions, wherein the
decorative representation is protected from wear with abrasion-resistant
particles, and the surface of the duty layer has a relief with recesses and
raised portions, and wherein the recesses are in overlapping relationship
with certain representation regions and the raised portions are in
overlapping relationship with other representation regions of the decorative
representation.
So-called laminated panel portions are known, from which floor
panels are produced for the purposes of imitating wood, ceramic or natural
stone surfaces. The laminated panel portions generally have a duty layer
which is formed from at least two mutually superposed papers and which
are disposed on a carrier panel portion of wood material. Medium density
or high density fibreboards, chipboards etc. are used as the wood material.
Generally panel portions of large area are pressed and then divided up into
a plurality of individual panels which are subjected to further processing to
constitute floor panels. The floor panels are generally rectangular. One of
the papers of the duty layer is printed upon with a graphic representation
of the surface to be imitated. The printed paper however generally has a
low level of resistance to abrasion and for that reason must be protected
from abrasion wear with a transparent paper provided with abrasion-
resistant particles, a so-called overlay. Powdered particles are used for
that purpose, which comprise for example aluminium oxide, a material from
which inter alia grinding sand is produced. A relief is impressed onto that
overlay with a pressing tool. The duty layer accordingly comprises a layer
for visual imitation and a layer for tactile imitation of a surface. In other
words: the haptics of the surface is matched to the graphics which
reproduce the material to be imitated.
The paper provided with the representation is saturated with resins,
for example phenol or melamine resin or mixed forms, after application of
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the representation. The resins can contain additives for example for the
purposes of better workability and fillers for reducing the material costs.
The overlay is also provided with resin. The two papers are later joined
together and to the carrier panel portion by fusing the resin in a hot
pressing operation.
A general state of the art is known from DE 196 04 905 A1. This
involves a flat element which can be used for floor coverings. The flat
element has a decorative layer of an genuine wood veneer. That natural
product determines both the visual aspect and also the surface structure of
the flat element. The surface is lacquered. Hard-substance particles are
embedded in the lacquering.
US No 3 958 054 discloses inter alia a decorative floor which has a
support layer of granular vinyl resin-bearing crumbly material. The resinous
granular material is fused to obtain a porous layer into which a printing ink
is introduced.
A floor panel of the general kind set forth is known from US
2003/0205013 A1. This involves a panel having a decorative paper which is
impregnated with melamine resin and which performs the optical decorative
function. Provided for the structure-imparting function of the surface is a
separate overlay which must be embossed with a structured pressing plate.
The disadvantage of that arrangement is growth of the resin
impregnated decorative paper by virtue of wetting with melamine resin.
The resin must be heated for the impregnation operation and applied in a
fluid condition. The absorption of resin causes the growth of the decorative
paper. That leads to problems with the exactitude of the covering of the
representation and the surface structure. In order to ensure that the
impregnated paper is always of the same dimensions US 2003/0205013 A1
proposes monitoring storage of the paper, namely in regard to time,
temperature and humidity
The use of the resin-impregnated papers causes problems and is
costly. It gives rise to problems because growth in respect of length and
width of the paper which is printed upon with the representation occurs.
The size of the paper is variable after the impregnation operation, because
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of the fact that the paper is wetted with fluid resin and because of the
growth that this involves. The size of the paper depends on influencing
factors such as air humidity, paper quality, resin quality and so forth. After
the impregnation operation a surface structure must be imparted to the
resin paper with a pressing tool. The surface structure however is
generally not in exactly overlapping relationship with the graphic
representation, because of the variable paper size. Two steps are therefore
required to produce an impregnated paper. In a first step the decorative
print is reduced in length and width and applied by printing to the paper
with a given degree of shrinkage. In a second step the paper is wetted
with resin and grows, in which case the paper is intended to adapt in the
grown condition to the size of the pressing tool. The process is inaccurate
because of the variable paper growth.
The use of resin-impregnated papers also requires a so-called
backing counteracting paper, namely a paper which has to be applied to the
underside of the carrier panel portion in order to provide a balance in
relation to the papers which form the duty layer on the top side of the
carrier panel portion. Without the counteracting paper, severe distortion of
the floor panel would occur after hot pressing of the paper layers with the
carrier panel portion.
The complexity involved in processing resin and paper increases the
reject rate in the production of the impregnated decorative print. Papers
which are larger than or less than the desired target size cannot be used
for a laminating operation because the representation and the embossing
would not be in mutually overlapping relationship.
In addition the energy and equipment costs for pressing resin
bearing papers with a carrier panel portion are high for the reason that high
temperatures and large amounts of heat have to be introduced into the
layers to be joined togetherP in order to fuse the resin and join the layers
3o together in that way.
A further advantage is found in the arrangement of the abrasion-
resistant particles. Two alternative ways of integrating the particles are
known. Alternative 1: the particles are disposed in the overlay paper.
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They are mixed with the paper fibres during production of the overlay
paper. The overlay paper is then resin-impregnated. Alternative 2: the
overlay paper is free of particles. Instead they are mixed into a resin, in
which case however the overlay paper is coated with the resin/particle
mixture only on one side and the opposite side of the overlay paper is
coated with particle-free resin. For embossing the relief, the side, which is
resin-coated in particle-free fashion, of the overlay paper must be facing
towards the pressing tool in order to prevent abrasion of the surface of the
pressing tool by the hard particles.
1o Both the above-mentioned alternatives suffer from the disadvantage
that the relief surface is formed as far as a certain depth from particle-free
material. That particle-free material wears rapidly in use of the floor panel.
The rate of wear slows down only when, due to the panel wearing away,
that layer in which the abrasion-resistant particles are distributed emerges.
It will be noted however that then the surface relief is already damaged.
The object of the invention is to provide a floor panel which has an
exact overlap of representation regions of a decoration and the associated
surface structures, wherein the floor panel affords a wear-resistant relief
surface and is simple and inexpensive to produce.
In accordance with the invention that object is attained in that the
decorative representation is resin-free and covered with a lacquer layer,
the recesses of the relief are produced by a chemical which reacts with the
lacquer and the abrasion-resistant particles are arranged in the lacquer
layer.
The lacquered decorative representation can be applied in the form
of a preliminary product for example to a paper or a film and is joined
thereto in order to produce a laminated panel portion. Lower pressures
and temperatures are sufficient for making the connection, than for
connecting resin-impregnated papers to a wood material panel portion. In
that way it is possible to simplify laminate presses or laminate rollers if in
that way floor panels without resin impregnation are processed. A heating
device can be entirely eliminated depending on the respective method of
making the join between the carrier panel portion and the preliminary
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product. Distortion of the floor panel elements is prevented because of the
small amount of heat applied. It is therefore possible to dispense with a
backing counteracting paper. The graphic representation can also be
printed without taking account of a degree of shrinkage. That simplifies the
5 imitation of photographed surfaces because the step of a reduction in size
in the production of the print and the step of subsequently increasing the
Size by means of growth of the paper are avoided. As embossing of the
paper surface is eliminated, no problems arise in connection with the
orientation of the representation and the surface structure and a precise
~~C~ overlap in respect of the surface structure and the representation
regions of
the graphic representation is achieved. In that way for example a knot of a
wood imitation can be felt at the embossed surface and is also graphically
represented exactly at the same location, in a deeper layer. The
representation is visible through the transparent lacquer. The tactile as
well as the visual impressions are matched to each other in respect of
location and precisely overlap each other. That provides an improved
imitation of wood, ceramic, natural stone surfaces and so forth.
The relief of the duty layer is formed by the lacquer layer. Abrasion
resistant particles are distributed in the lacquer layer and extend to the
lacquer surface. Therefore, between the graphic representation and the
relief surface, there is no particle-free region which could quickly wear
away. The anti-wear effect due to the abrasion-resistant particles therefore
occurs immediately upon use of the floor surface. The relief surface is
particularly well protected from an abrasive loading.
The decorative representation and the lacquer layer are arranged on
a prefabricated decorative paper in a simple fashion and the decorative
paper is joined to the carrier panel portion in the finished condition of the
floor panel. Alternatively, instead of a decorative paper, it is also possible
to provide a decorative film. A decorative film comprising plastic material
has the advantage for example that it can be stretched. By virtue of that
property it can be better wrapped around and can be used for example for
three-dimensional coating of an edge shape.
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The lacquered decorative paper is desirably applied to the carrier
panel portion with an adhesive. Any suitable physically binding or
chemically reacting adhesive can serve as the adhesive. It is also possible
to use contact adhesives, for example in the form of a double-sided film
which is disposed between the decorative paper and the carrier panel
portion. The adhesive can be applied to the paper or the film prior to the
pressing operation.
It is helpful if, at least at two oppositely disposed edges of the carrier
panel portion, the lacquered decorative paper forms a partial wrapping
0 around the edges. The edges of the carrier panel portion are generally
subjected to cutting machining. Wood fibres of the wood material of the
carrier panel portion are exposed. As a result the dry wood material can
easily absorb moisture and swell. Wrapping the machined edge entirely or
partially retards the penetration of moisture into the wood material. The
operation of applying the duty layer comprising lacquered decorative paper
is preferably effected after the cut-off edge has been milled on the carrier
panel portion. In that situation the decorative paper projects beyond the
cut-off edges which are to be coated. It is then pressed thereagainst and
glued to the carrier panel portion. It can either be cut to the required
length or it is shortened after the gluing operation to the required
dimension.
Because the surface of the floor panel is structured the butting edges
of two panels are never disposed opposite to each other in coincident
relationship. The height of the edge of a floor panel varies in a range
between the highest location of the surface relief and the deepest location
thereof. In other words: the configuration of the edge of a floor panel is
irregularly wavy. The configuration is produced during the cutting
machining of the edge of the floor panel. The edge configuration
corresponds to the profile which the relief has in the plane in which the
edge machining operation is effected.
In the assembled condition a deeper subregion of the edge of a floor
panel in accordance with the state of the art can bear against a region, at a
higher level, of the edge of an adjacent panel. As a result, edge regions
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which are disposed at a high position project from a floor surface and are at
risk of being broken. They are easily damaged by impacts thereagainst. In
order to prevent such breakage the carrier panel portion of the proposed
floor panel desirably has cut-off edges on the side of the duty layer, at the
outer edge portions thereof. That protects the edges from peeling or
chipping off. The edges are less delicate because a recess is formed in the
region of a join between adjacent floor panels and the lower edges are
protected from impacts and wear.
In a simple configuration two mutually opposite cut-off edges of the
carrier panel portion are enclosed with a self-adhesive decorative film.
That has the following advantage: on a carrier panel portion which is for
example of a rectangular shape, two mutually opposite cut-off edges can
be enclosed completely with the duty layer. Enclosing the other two edges
is complicated and expensive from the point of view of production process
engineering because, in the region of each corner, there is rather more
area of the duty layer than is required for enclosing the edge. An excess
residue of the duty layer must be cut off either before or after the step of
wrapping it around each edge of a rectangular floor panel.
The proposed edge protection by virtue of wrapping the floor panel
can alternatively be achieved by coating with a self-adhesive decorative
film. That simplifies manufacture. For that purpose firstly first edges have
to be wrapped with the duty layer. They are then processed or machined
at the ends, for example with a milling tool, in order to remove projecting
pieces of the duty layer. That affords a clean surface for coating with the
decorative film.
For the sake of completeness it should be mentioned that it is also
possible to work with a decorative film without self-adhesive properties,
which has to be applied with another suitable adhesive. The decorative film
does not have to have any abrasion-resistant particles because the cut-off
3o edges are set back under the surface of a finished floor and as a result
are
subjected to a low degree of abrasion.
The enclosing wrapping can coat the edge of the floor panel beyond
the cut-off edges. That provides that an even greater part of the machined
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edge of the floor panel is protected from moisture penetrating thereinto.
Even if the edges of the carrier panel portion have groove-and-tongue
profiles, a pair of oppositely disposed edges can be entirely or partially
enclosed with the duty layer. Complete enclosure of the tongue profile
involves a high level of complication and expenditure. Enclosing a tongue
profile as far as the tongue or almost as far as same and enclosing the free
end of an upper groove wall of the groove profile is simple from the
production engineering point of view because the duty layer only has to be
bent over at the cut-off edge. Additional bends for example around the top
l0 side of the tongue profile or into the groove of the groove profile
increase
the technical complication and expenditure.
The edges of the carrier panel portion can have positively locking
locking profiles with undercut configurations which in the laid condition in
the plane of the floor panels prevent the floor panels from pulling apart in a
direction perpendicular to the locking profiles. Equally the edges of the
carrier panel portion can have conventional groove-and-tongue profiles
which must be joined with the addition of glue.
The enclosing wrapping enjoys particular significance for floors which
are to have given laying patterns, such as for example a fishbone pattern
2sa which is assembled from wood slats. Hitherto floor panels are primarily
produced, which can have a representation of a plurality of wood slats. For
example floor panels with the visual appearance of the bottom of a ship.
Laying patterns such as fishbone patterns cannot be produced with large
floor panels because the configuration of the join between the panels would
disturb the visual appearance of the fishbone pattern. In addition wood
slats can merely be partially represented lying at the edge of a floor panel.
The represented slat portions at the edge would have to be assembled
during the laying operation by fitting exactly against the adjacent panel in
such a way that two represented slat portions supplement each other to
3~ form a complete wood slat. In that situation it would be necessary to
attend to a precise image at the joins in order to avoid a displacement of
those slat portions which are intended jointly to represent a wood slat.
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One solution for laying patterns of that kind provides that, instead of
representations of a plurality of wood slats on a large floor panel,
individual
wood slats are in the form of small floor panels. Each floor panel forms the
image of a single wood slat. The laying pattern is therefore no longer a
representation. Instead the laying pattern is produced by means of the
individual imitated wood slats which, like original wood slats, are arranged
in any pattern.
The step of laying individual wood slat imitations increases the
proportion of joins in a floor. Joins which hitherto were represented in the
0 form of printed joins on floor panels of large area are now real joins. For
that reason, correspondingly greater significance is afforded to protection
for the machined edges of the floor panels, the smaller that the floor panels
are. Because of the comparatively high proportion of joins involved with
small floor panels, for example when cleaning more moisture can penetrate
into the carrier panel portions than in the case of a floor made up of large-
area panels. The joins however are adequately protected from the
absorption of moisture by enclosing the edges of small floor panels, as
described above.
A paper or film layer can be disposed on the underside of the carrier
panel portion to provide protection from moisture or as a measure for
damping the sound of footsteps. That layer can be joined to the underside
of the carrier panel portion, by spot or point joins. It is therefore possible
to save on a join over the full area of the carrier panel portion, like the
way
in which a backing counteracting paper is joined to the carrier panel
portion.
The invention is shown by way of example hereinafter in a drawing
and described in detail with reference to individual Figures in which:
Figure 1 shows a view of part of two locked floor panels with cut-off
edge, wherein a top side of the panel is provided with a lacquered duty
0 layere
Figure 2 shows a diagrammatic view of a duty layer,
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Figure 3 shows a view of part of two locked floor panels with cut-off
edge, wherein a top side of the panel is provided with a lacquered duty
layer, and with partial enclosure of milled locking profiles, and
Figure 4 shows a view of part of two locked floor panels without cut
s off edge, wherein a top side of the panel is provided with a lacquered duty
layer.
Figure 1 shows two floor panels 1 and 2 according to the invention
which are locked together. Each floor panel 1 and 2 respectively has
complementary locking profiles at oppositely disposed edges so that the
10 profile of one edge and the profile of the other edge of a floor panel fit
each
other in such a way that a respective similar floor panel can be fixed to the
free edge of a laid floor panel. Accordingly the floor panel 1, on the edge
remote from the tongue profile 15 is provided with a groove profile (not
shown) and the floor panel 2, in opposite relationship to its groove profile
14, has a tongue profile (not shown).
The two floor panels 1 and 2 have a carrier panel portion 3 and 4
respectively, on the top side of which is disposed a duty layer 5 and 6
respectively.
For the purposes of describing the structure of the duty layer 5 and 6
respectively, Figure 2 diagrammatically shows a portion of the duty layer.
As can be seen therefrom the duty layer comprises a paper 7 which is
printed with a decorative graphic representation 8 and which, provided with
the graphics, can be referred to as the decorative paper 7. The graphic
representation 8 is sub-divided into different representation regions 9 and
10. To protect the representation ~ from abrasion wear, it is coated with a
transparent lacquer 11. The thickness of the lacquer layer 11 and the
thickness of the paper 7 are shown in Figure 2 without proportionality. The
lacquer 11 is transparent and is mixed with abrasion-resistant particles 12
for the purposes of affording a high level of resistance to wear. The
particles 12 extend to the lacquer surface. The lacquer surface also has a
surface relief 13 which precisely matches the graphic representation 8 on
the paper 7. Recesses and raised portions of the surface relief 13 are
respectively in overlapping relationship with given representation regions 9
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11
and 10 respectively of the graphic representation 8. The recesses of the
surface relief 13 have been produced by a chemical which is applied prior to
the lacquer coating and which after application of the lacquer 11 reacts
therewith. Figure 2 shows deep locations - recesses 13a - of the relief 13,
which are protected with a thin lacquer layer, as well as higher regions -
raised portions 13b - of the surface relief 13, which are protected with a
thicker lacquer layer. The deep locations 13a of the surface relief are in
overlapping relationship with representation regions 9 of the graphic
representation 8. In that way the tactile and the visual impressions
supplement each other and that arrangement affords a particularly good
imitation of floor surface. A recess in the lacquer layer 11 can extend at a
maximum as far as the printed paper 7. Such recess lacks the protective
lacquer layer. Such recesses should preferably be of a small area so that
they are welt protected from wear by surrounding raised regions.
A duty layer as shown in Figure 2 is prefabricated. To produce a
floor panel 1 and 2 respectively the prefabricated duty layer 5 and 6
respectively is mounted to a carrier panel portion 3 and 4 respectively.
As shown in Figure 1 and 3 the floor panels 1 and 2 lie with the
underside of the carrier panel portions 3 and 4 which comprise wood
material, on a laying substrate surface U, for example a soft underlay which
damps the sound of footsteps.
The carrier panel portions 3 and 4 of the floor panels 1 and 2 have a
break or cut-off at the edges at the top side. In the present case the edge
cut-offs are formed by milled radii R1 and R2. The radius R1 of the carrier
panel portion 3 is enclosingly wrapped with the duty layer 5. The radius R2
of the carrier panel portion 4 of the adjacent floor panel 2 is enclosingly
wrapped with the duty layer 6. The edges of the floor panels 1 and 2, at
the junction thereof, are somewhat deeper than the surface of the floor
panels 1 and 2~ In that way they are protected from breakage and being
worn away, in the laid condition.
The floor panels 1 and 2 have locking profiles. These are in the form
of modified groove-and-tongue profiles i4 and 15 respectively. As shown
in Figures 1 and 3 the tongue 15a is fitted in positively locking relationship
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into the groove 14a, in which case an undercut configuration as between
the tongue profile 15 and the groove profile 14 prevents the tongue profile
15 from being pulled out of the groove profile 14 when the locked floor
panels 1 and 2 are lying on a laying surface U. It will be appreciated that it
is also possible to provide conventional groove-and-tongue profiles which
do not have any undercut configuration and have to be glued, or the like.
In many cases panel floors are laid in a floating fashion. In other
words they have a gap relative to the walls of the room in which they are
laid. Frequently, to damp the sound of footsteps, a soft underlay is used,
which serves as the laying surface U for the floor panels 1 and 2. In order
to promote sinking of the floor into such a soft underlay at the joining
location between the floor panels 1 and 2, the locking profiles 14 and 15
which afford a positively locking action form a common hinge G in the
locked condition, as is shown in Figure 1 and in Figure 3 which is described
hereinafter. The hinged flexibility which is incorporated into the join
protects the locking profiles from breakage.
Figures 3 and 4 show alternative embodiments of floor panels 1 and
2 respectively with locking profiles 14 and 15. The configuration of the
geometry and the function of the locking profiles 14 and 15 respectively
corresponds to the above-described configuration shown in Figure 1.
Therefore the same references are used for the same features.
In Figure 3, the only difference in relation to the configuration shown
in Figure 1 is at the edges of the floor panels 1 and 2. There the duty layer
5 and 6 respectively is passed over the cut-off edges of the carrier panel
portions 3 and 4 further into the join between the butting edges. At the
edge of the floor panel 1 the enclosure formed by the duty layer 5 extends
almost as far as the top side of the tongue 15a of a tongue profile. At the
edge of the floor panel 2 the free end of an upper groove wall of a groove
profile 14 is almost completely covered by the duty layer 6. The entire join
3Q of the locked groove-and-tongue profiles 14 and 15 is of a labyrinth-like
configuration. The join has a portion which is towards the top side of the
floor panels 1 and 2 and a portion which is towards the underside of the
floor panels 1 and 2. The tongue 15a and the groove 14a are disposed
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13
approximately at the centre of the carrier panel portions between the
above-mentioned portions of the join. The portion of the join which is
towards the top side of the floor panels 1 and 2 is heavily stressed in
everyday use by dirt and moisture which penetrates thereinto. Less
moisture and dirt penetrate into the other portions of the join. For normal
situations of use of floor panels 1 and 2 in the domestic area therefore, it
is
sufficient to provide a wrapping enclosure in the region of that portion of
the join, which is towards the top side of the floor panels 1 and 2.
Figure 4 shows a particularly simple embodiment of floor panels 1
o and 2 which are shown as lying on a laying surface U. Those floor panels
do not have cut-off edges of the carrier panel portions 3 and 4. The
surfaces of the carrier panel portions 3 and 4 are flat. The duty layers 5
and 6 are disposed on the flat surface of the carrier panel portions 3 and 4.
The ends of the duty layers 5 and 6 bear in butting relationship against
each other. A tongue profile 15 and a groove profile 14 engage behind
each other and connect the adjacent panels. The tongue profile 15 and the
groove profile 14 form a common hinge G. It will be appreciated that the
carrier panel portions 3 and 4 could also alternatively be provided with
another locking profile which has a positively locking action, or they can
have a conventional profile which is free of an undercut configuration and
which has to be connected with glue.
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14
List of references
1 floor panel
2 floor panel
3 carrier panel portion
4 carrier panel portion
5 duty gayer
6 duty layer
7 paper
8 graphic representation
9 representation region
10 representation region
11 lacquer
12 abrasion-resistant
particles
13 surface relief
13a recess
13b raised portion
14 groove profile
14a groove
15 tongue profile
15a tongue
G hinge
R1 radius
R2 radius
U laying surface
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